Pushkar Before Dawn

The annual Pushkar Camel Fair, which began on Thursday, is now in full swing. Some snapshots.

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Pushkar, located on the banks of a lake in India's state of Rajasthan, is a popular destination for Hindu pilgrims and tourists. It is best-known for its annual camel fair, which attracts thousands of domestic and foreign tourists. Left, a camel herder arrived with his livestock at the camel fair on Nov. 2.
Deepak Sharma/Associated Press…

The fair takes place according to the Hindu lunar calendar and this year falls from Nov. 3-10 this year. Left, tourists played Indian drums during an event in Pushkar, Nov. 6.
Manish Swarup/Associated Press…

Camel races, bridal competitions and moustache contests are some of the main attractions of the Pushkar fair.
Manish Swarup/Associated Press…

The original purpose of the fair was for people to trade camels, horses and cattle. Left, camels drank water at the Pushkar fair, Nov. 4.
Manish Swarup/Associated Press…

Camel herders started their day in the early morning at the Pushkar fair, Nov. 4.
Manish Swarup/Associated Press…

Folk music, dance and poetry are also showcased for tourists. Left, Artists in traditional attire danced during a march in Pushkar, Sunday.
Manish Swarup/Associated Press…

A hot air balloon and camels are seen at the Pushkar fair, Monday.
Deepak Sharma/Associated Press…

A person sitting inside the ticket box of a merry go round, with 'welcome' written in Hindi, waited for customers at the Pushkar fair, Nov. 5.
Manish Swarup/Associated Press…

Tourists watched as a girl on a tightrope at the Pushkar fair, Nov. 5.
Manish Swarup/Associated Press…

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So, what to say about the Pushkar camel fair, which has been written about – and photographed –ad nauseam over the years?

Well, if you are going to go there – it runs until Nov. 10 – perhaps consider getting up early in the morning.

I visited Pushkar this weekend, and after a chance meeting with a German tourist on a hilltop decided to take his advice and tour the town at 4 a.m. on Sunday morning.

Manish Swarup/Associated Press

Camel hurdlers as pictured during dawn, Nov. 4. Click here to view a slideshow on the Pushkar Camel Fair.

That might sound a little extreme but I’m not kidding when I say this strategy was key to my enjoyment of the festival.

As with all travel, there’s a fine line between interested observation of foreign cultures and a voyeuristic intrusion on other people’s lives.

In Pushkar during the camel fair, I sensed some friction between local people, angered by hordes of camera-happy foreigners descending on their bathing ghats and peering in to their tents on the edges of the Rajasthani desert.

But in the darkness before dawn, I felt much less intrusive and conspicuous. I walked around the ghats on Pushkar’s small lake, watching thousands of Hindu devotees taking ritual baths in the waters.

At one point, a group of people were huddled around a small fire, waiting for a holy man to bless them and mark their forehead with a vermillion-colored tika. Just down the steps, a group of women and girls warmed themselves around a brazier, singing religious songs.

From there I hiked up to the Saraswati Temple on a nearby hill, and watched the sun rise from over a ridge of mountains that separate Pushkar from the larger town of Ajmer. By the time I started the descent, a growing number of tourists began to appear at the temple.

Back at the bottom of the hill, I arrived by chance at a small track which camel traders use to drive their animals from overnight pasturages back to the scrubby desert on the edge of town where the bartering takes place. (A good camel, locals told me, can cost $4,000.)

During the day, the fair can be overwhelming. There are swarms of tourists, some with gigantic telescopic camera lenses and others riding on camels wearing Rajasthani-style turbans.

But at this time – it was 7 a.m. by now – it was still early enough to get an idea of what this ancient camel festival must have been like before it became a global event.

Ok, I know this is a conceit and that every foreign traveler thinks they have the key to enjoying a place. And others will say that the Pushkar camel fair is enjoyable whatever time of the day, which also is true.

Still, as I walked across the fair ground and more tourists began to funnel in, and then wandered back through town past the throngs of people in the tight lane outside the Brahma temple, I was pleased to have gotten up early.

How to get there: The best option is to take an overnight train from Delhi to Ajmer, from where it’s a 13-kilometer taxi or bus ride to Pushkar. But at this late date, trains are likely to be full. The next best option is the eight-hour, overnight Volvo bus from Delhi to Ajmer, leaving at 23:15 from Bikaner House near India Gate. (Enquiry Tel..: +91 11 23383469 Reservation Tel.: +91 11 23386698 Bikaner House, Pandara Road.) Booking only last Thursday, I was unable to get even this and took a Volvo bus to Jaipur (five hours, leaving 22:30. Around 800 rupees) and then a two-and-a-half-hour ride on a rickety local bus to Ajmer (110 rupees.) Flying to Jaipur and then taking a bus or taxi didn’t seem like a worthwhile option given the flight doesn’t get you to Pushkar.

Where to stay: You can stay at the upscale Pushkar Palace on the lake. On the phone, a receptionist offered me a room for 16,000 rupees (over $300) and immediately came down to 10,000 rupees. Locals say the hotel has lost much of its charm since a zealous local bureaucrat deemed its lakeside terrace violated planning regulations and had it torn down. But it’s still popular. There are plenty of cheap backpacker options in the town. I opted for – don’t laugh –Pink Floyd Cafe and Hotel (750 rupees with bathroom.) The place is well known on the “Asia Trail” and was clean and well-located near the Pushkar Palace, with views over the lake from the rooftop café, if a little spartan.

Where to eat: Pushkar is a holy place so the food is vegetarian and alcohol –in theory – is proscribed. Honey and Spice is a small breakfast and lunch place in the Laxmi Market near the lake, run by a chatty Indian gentleman who lived for years in Dublin. It has great coffee, porridge, interesting sandwiches (pesto and fenugreek anyone?) and banana cake.

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